A Daily Word - July 14, 2010

A PLACE TO STAND

We are beginning a new millennium. Can you believe it? I remember as a boy wondering if I might live to see the turn of the century. The post-war fifties seemed to speed by, and then the turbulent sixties…but it was the 1970's that ushered in the beginning of a revolution in America. Was it economic? No. Political? No. Educational? No. It was a moral revolution where authority of every kind was questioned, undermined, and ultimately disregarded. And chaos has been the result.

Some of you may have read a book called The Lord of the Flies. It depicts an island of "lost boys," some good and some bad, who set up their own form of rule. Any time they had a problem or dispute, they consulted a conch shell for wisdom. If they listened hard enough, the shell would tell them what was right. But one day in a fight the shell was shattered, and the boys' source of authority was destroyed. Suddenly, anarchy set in. Might made right. There were no longer good boys and bad boys. Every boy on the island became a savage.

The conch shell is broken. There is a cry today in families, churches, and the marketplace for moral authority. The Bible is a source to which we can look and say with confidence, "This is right," or "This is wrong." You and I need authority in our lives. And as we enter the twenty-first century, we need it more than ever. I believe the Bible—the Word of God—is that authority we need. It's precepts give us a place to stand, and a foundation for right living that is unshakeable and true.

MEMORY VERSE

All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.

About The Winning Walk

The Winning Walk with Dr. Ed Young is the international on-air and online teaching ministry of Dr. Ed Young, Senior Pastor of Second Baptist Church in Houston, Texas. The Winning Walk proclaims the proven truth of God’s Word to give men and women the world over a winning way to live life.

About Dr. Ed Young

Dr. H. Edwin Young was born in Laurel, Mississippi. He accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior at the age of 12 through the leading of his pastor's wife, Mrs. Gates.

Following graduation from high school in Laurel, Dr. Ed Young entered the University of Alabama as an engineering major. Mid-way through his freshman year, challenged by an atheist in his dorm who questioned his belief in God, he began to seek God's purpose for his life. Six months later, he surrendered to the call to preach the Gospel, and enrolled at Mississippi College to continue his education.

On June 28, 1959, he married Jo Beth Landrum. Dr. Young's preparation for the ministry continued at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. His first pastorate was in North Carolina, and he pastored in North and South Carolina until 1978 when he moved to Houston, Texas. He became the pastor at Second Baptist Church where he continues to pastor today. The congregation has grown from 2,000 members in 1978 to 6 campuses and we have reached over 70 thousand members.

Dr. Young was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention in June of 1992 and again in June, 1993. He is the author of many books including, Total Heart Health, The 10 Commandments of Parenting, and The 10 Commandments of Marriage. Dr. Young's broadcast ministry, The Winning Walk, can be seen and heard across North America and throughout the world.